Art History

This course analyzes artistic heritage as a material manifestation of societal memory. It explores the interdependence between artistic heritage and the context of its creation and appreciation. 

The course examines the development of art in Britain, and its struggle to assert itself in the wider international art world. Students take as a starting point the careers of four artists who are central to the canon of British art, and whose work still sparks debate. These case-studies vary from year to year. Previously, they have included William Hogarth, William Blake, J.M.W Turner, Walter Sickert, Vanessa Bell, Bridget Riley, Steve McQueen and Lubaina Himid. Possible examples are Lucian Freud, Tracey Emin, Grayson Perry, Pauline Boty and Olafur Eliasson. Building through the course is a larger discussion about the idea of a tradition of British art, and the value and stability of an artistic canon. Is there such a thing as tradition, and if so, what are its themes and preoccupations, and where might it be tending?

The 19th century saw the birth of many revolutionary artistic practices that transformed the visual culture of Europe. Industrialization, urbanization, and colonialism brought about a new social order, and artists responded by developing artistic styles that addressed society's modern values. This course explores artistic innovations in Britain and France including Impressionism, Pre-Raphalitism, and the invention of photography. By examining individual art objects and wider art historical themes, students see how new artistic styles responded to issues like class, gender, and race. This course makes use of the rich art collections on offer in London, with seminars taking place at Tate Britain and the National Gallery.

This course focuses on the state and evolution of photography in the wake of the second World War. It treats the following topics: humanist photography (1945-1968) and its origins; subjective photography in Europe and the United States (1950-1970); renewal of the American documentary after 1945; revival of the landscape in contemporary photography; photojournalism; contemporary photography and art from conceptual photography to visual photography; quotes, reinterpretations, and reappropriations of modern photography; experimental photography; and post photography. 

This course is part of the Laurea Magistrale degree program and is intended for advanced level students. Enrolment is by permission of the instructor. This course will help students to develop a general vision of the relationships between Italian Literature and other Arts, from the nineteenth century to present, with a focus on painting. The course discusses the most relevant works of literature which interact with images and analyzes critical, theoretical, and literary texts regarding visual arts. In addition to the interactions between literature and the arts, the module introduces students to the following themes and areas for in-depth study: 1) the interaction between literature and the visual arts; 2) the issue of the gaze in literature; 3) iconology, the "visual turn" and the “pictorial turn;” and 4) literature and visual arts facing the crisis of modernity and postmodernity. In particular, the course delves into the intermedial influence of the visual arts (painting, illustration, and photography) and the reflection on the gaze in some works by Italo Calvino and Gianni Celati in the last decades of the 20th century.

Since the middle of the 19th century, realistic movements in the visual arts have claimed to show 'real life'. However, this is not about the deceptive illusion of a particularly natural representation, so that one could confuse the image with the model. Rather, a new understanding of the objects worthy of images and the political functions of art is emerging, which not only aims to provide information about reality, but also actively participates in it. The representation of 'real people' and social reality can coincide with the stylistic devices of factual documentaryism as well as with the melodrama and drastic nature of the description, the use of fantastic-magical elements or the artistic processing of everyday objects. The seminar examines and questions various varieties of this understanding of art (e.g. European realism in the 19th century, New Objectivity, Magical Realism, American Realism, Socialist Realism, Nouveau Réalisme, Capitalist Realism, New Leipzig School, Neo-Realism in China). with regard to continuities and changes in demands and means in the respective representation of 'reality'.

This course introduces students to the material and visual culture of the ancient world from the second millennium BC to late antiquity. Semester 1 focuses on the Greek world. Students will study the built environment - from the great urban monuments to everyday domestic units (including temples, "homes" for the gods). Students explore the art and iconography of the ancient world alongside the material residues of daily life and ritual. Students are introduced to the different perspectives and methods of both archaeologists and art historians in interpreting material remains and visual images. The course combines close study of individual pieces of evidence with an evaluation of how they illuminate the societies, cultures, institutions, and economies of classical antiquity. The course draws heavily from the extraordinary collections in London, particularly the British Museum.

This course provides a systematic survey of the development of Scottish architecture from the 11th Century to mid-17th century. There is strong focus on the social and political context and the development of the castellated tradition and its transformation to domestic and civic forms. Students examine buildings, styles and designing, vernacular buildings, and designed landscapes. There is a strong emphasis on archival skills and interpretation and the way that different historiographies impact on our understanding. 

Based on an exploration of visual and literary culture, this course addresses the place of women photographers and writers in the history of art; the expression of gender stereotypes in literary production and visual culture; and the deconstruction of these clichés by a new generation of artists, favoring a female gaze.

This course discusses the relationship between text, art, and the nature of the Renaissance. This course demonstrates how, in the 16th century, literature dictated the representation of space and the natural elements.